


Games

by castieldeansangel



Category: The Queen's Gambit (TV)
Genre: Chess, Drabble, F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-11-13
Updated: 2020-11-13
Packaged: 2021-03-09 22:42:25
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 573
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27533965
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/castieldeansangel/pseuds/castieldeansangel
Relationships: Beth Harmon/Benny Watts
Comments: 4
Kudos: 138





	Games

She holds his gaze for a few seconds longer.

A blink and a secret smile. 

Then, she turns her attention back to the board. She spares a few moments to look at the pieces before extending her hand and making her move. She pushes the clock’s button and goes back to her previous position; hands supporting her chin and brown eyes set on her opponent’s face.

Beth has always had this unnerving way of making it look like she’s playing  _ you  _ instead of the game. Like the pieces were a mere instrument made specially to make you look like a fool. She makes it look as if she doesn’t have to think much about her next move before making it, as if following her instinct was more than enough to make you lose. This assessment isn’t entirely accurate, nor is it entirely wrong either. 

Beth Harmon is a master. 

And, of course, most of it is thanks to her inherent talent - the type of talent that sets any airport novel writer from Franz Kafka, any lowly bar singer from Louis Armstrong. But it’s much more than that. 

Beth Harmon loves the game. 

She’s learned it all; she knows those 64 squares set on that 8x8 square grid better than she knows herself. She knows her king and her queen, her rooks and her knights, she knows their worth, their purpose and their potential. She knows when letting go of one of her pieces will help her arrive at a checkmate and exactly in how many moves. She has adopted the game until it became like breathing, inhaling all the books on Casablanca, Botvinnik, Lasker and more. 

So, yes. 

Beth Harmon has her talent, but she also has her brain, her dedication and her passion. That glint in her eyes isn't just from being good. It comes from sleepless nights of reading and replaying games on the ceiling, of days of crying because, even when she thought she’d lost everything, at least she still had those 64 squares that made her feel as safe as the comforting warmth of her now dead mother’s hand on hers. That glint comes from knowing, even without looking at her opponent’s move, that she’s about to make a checkmate.

The man in front of her gulps almost imperceptibly and Beth’s lips tug upwards. He makes his move and punches the button with enough force to make the thing rattle. Beth doesn’t comment, merely turns her eyes back to the board and moves the next piece with long, elegant fingers.  _ Checkmate _ .

Her opponent says nothing nor does she. They both sit and stare at each other, one of them seething and the other with a blank face. Finally, the man looks away and stands from his chair, a loud screeching sound coming from where the feet grate the floor. Beth winces and watches silently as the man walks away.

“Congratulations,” A voice comes from behind her and she smiles without turning around.

“I could have won in less moves,” She says, tilting her head to the side while studying the board.

“I could see that. Are you getting rusty, Harmon?” The voice teases.

Beth turns her head, raising a perfect eyebrow. “Why don’t you sit and find out, Watts?” 

Benny grins and walks closer, leaning to kiss her forehead before going to sit on the now vacant chair.

He begins setting the pieces back on their places, “Let’s play.”


End file.
